DONAL LENIHAN: Time for Munster to pair JJ and Keatley
With a home quarter-final in Europe secured and top billing in the Rabo Direct, Penney has proved his worth and is more than worthy of the contract extension that will surely come his way. He has facilitated a lot of change since his arrival, one of the most significant being the appointment of 24-year-old Peter O’Mahony to captain the side.
It was a no-brainer that the ferociously driven Cork man would ascend to that role at some stage in his career but to hand him the reins at a period when so much change was happening was both inspired and timely. O’Mahony is the epitome of what Munster rugby is all about and appointing him sent a clear message to the younger brigade in the squad that their time has come in terms of shaping the future of rugby in the province.
O’Mahony’s reaction when he dotted down to secure Munster’s fourth try to bag the vital winning bonus point on Sunday demonstrated what it means to him to play in this side.
He gives everything to the cause. Captaincy is something that evolves over time. Some players are natural born leaders and make obvious candidates when it comes to assuming the captaincy role but the decision making process on the field is one that has to be nurtured and learned over time in the heat of battle.
In this respect it is of massive benefit to O’Mahony that he is learning his trade with Paul O’Connell guiding his path from close quarters. How often do you see the two conferring when there are big decisions to be made. That O’Connell, Ireland’s captain, fitness permitting, to the next World Cup, is both willing and committed to the role of first lieutenant in Munster and happy to assume the mantle of father figure says everything you need to know about him. O’Mahony couldn’t have a better mentor.
What England captain Chris Robshaw would have given for someone of O’Connell’s ilk on his shoulder as he stuttered through the early phase of his captaincy of the national side, under the intense scrutiny that accompanies that role across the water. O’Mahony is also benefiting from the wise counsel provided by James Coughlan whose consistent excellence makes a nonsense of his non-cap status.
In an era when caps were handed out rather too easily to under-strength squads on various sojourns to North America during the Lions tours of 2009 and 2013, it is a travesty that Coughlan’s recent omission from the Irish squad would appear to signal the end of his quest for richly deserved international recognition.
With the probability that Munster will only provide a handful of starters for Ireland in the coming weeks, it affords Penney the opportunity of maintaining Munster’s momentum in their forthcoming Rabo encounters against Cardiff Blues, Zebre, Ospreys and Scarlets which run parallel to the Six Nations. It also offers the Munster management the scope for a little experimentation.
I have been championing the cause of facilitating both Ian Keatley and JJ Hanrahan in the same Munster back line for some time now yet Munster have resisted the temptation.
Yet the final 27 minutes against Edinburgh must have offered backs coach Simon Mannix food for thought given the fluidity in Munster’s attacking game, aided by the switch of Keatley to inside centre and Hanrahan to out half.
Operating a twin pivot affords Munster an expansion in both their tactical kicking options and in their distribution out wide. Having Hanrahan on the field also offers a back up placekicker. This isn’t a criticism of James Downey, who has always given everything to the Munster cause, but in simple terms his strengths are under-utilised in the wide game Munster have been pursuing since Penney’s arrival.
In this respect Munster’s execution is improving game by game, with the opening half in Ravenhill the only step backwards in recent times. The players look far more comfortable on the ball and if Munster wish to take their game to the next level, which at this stage encompasses winning the Heineken Cup, they must have that potent attacking mix in their armoury.
Despite the highly impressive performances produced on a weekly basis by the Munster pack at the set piece and the breakdown, they are unlikely to enjoy that level of dominance when facing the massive forward units encountered against the likes of Toulouse, Clermont Auvergne and Toulon.
With Hanrahan and Keatley unlikely to be required by Joe Schmidt for anything more than Irish Wolfhounds duty over the next few weeks, why not give that twin axis the opportunity to work together in a few of those Rabo contests? The feelgood factor in having three sides still contesting in Europe has offered a huge boost to the two most important arms of the IRFU machine, the rugby and finance departments. Schmidt must be hugely encouraged by the quality of performances delivered by some of the less established players over the last two weekends with a new found strength in depth emerging in a number of key positions.
Given the injury profile attaching to the international game, that will be of crucial importance over the course of the Six Nations championship as Declan Kidney found to his cost last year.
However, the man wearing the biggest smile in IRFU headquarters at the moment is honorary treasurer Tom Grace.
A former international captain and valued member of the invincible 1974 Lions squad that toured South Africa, Grace has a good feel for the game.
However it is in his professional capacity as a top accountant and noted liquidator that guides this thought process at present.
He has the unenviable task of balancing the books in an uncertain market where the lack of demand for the latest tranche of 10-year tickets for international rugby at the Aviva has impacted heavily.
Leinster and Irish rugby received a huge fillip last week with the news that Sean O’Brien has decided to ply his trade on the home front for another two years while the news that O’Connell will finish out his career in the red of Munster and Keith Earls has committed to the cause for the same timeframe is both timely and welcome.
The prospect of Jamie Heaslip staying put also appear to have taken a turn for the better which would also act as a massive endorsement for the way the professional game is run here, despite those financial constraints.
While I appreciate it is impossible for the IRFU to match the vast salaries on offer in France, it appears the lessons of the Jonny Sexton debacle last season have been fully absorbed in rugby HQ.
It was a great weekend for Grace given that Munster, Leinster and Ulster have enriched the coffers of the IRFU by virtue of the €450,000 bonus payments each have generated from the ERC by reaching the quarter-finals with more to come for Ulster and Munster from the corporate activities attaching to their home games. That financial windfall must be used to support Munster in their efforts be to source a world-class outside centre to replace the departing Casey Laulala.
Unfortunately that will prove problematic in that all the top quality players are tied into existing contracts until after the 2015 World Cup. Sourcing the right man will be crucial to maintaining Munster’s upward spiral and should be prioritised as one of the key objectives to be resolved by the start of next season.
